Honoring Tony Garcia Jr.,
War Veteran and Community Leader
A new street sign in West Tampa will honor the name and legacy of a war veteran and community leader.
The late Tony Garcia Jr. served in both World War II and the Korean War — military service that took him far away from home to the Aleutian Islands and Panama for years at a time. But Mr. Garcia is best known for his service back at home where his lifetime mission was simply to help as many people as he could. As executive director of Tampa’s United Services Organizations (USO) for 35 years, Mr. Garcia worked tirelessly to provide resources to both active-duty service members and veterans. From helping them secure jobs after retirement to providing movie tickets and typewriters for visiting soldiers who wanted to write letters to their families, Mr. Garcia touched the lives of countless military service members who lived in Tampa or were just passing through as part of their military orders.
But his kind nature and desire to serve was not limited to the military community. Mr. Garcia was very involved in West Tampa, where he was born and raised. He was instrumental in the revival of the West Tampa Chamber of Commerce where he served as a board member and at one point the executive director. He was also a champion of the Hillsborough Educational Foundation, the Latin American Fiesta, and other community groups.
Councilman Luis Viera led the initiative to honor Mr. Tony Garcia Jr. with an honorary street sign.
"Tony Garcia was a patriot’s patriot who loved not only the United States of America, but everyday Americans. His legacy is one of patriotic service. For decades, he served as the head of our local USO, welcoming our troops and helping to entertain them. He was Tampa’s Bob Hope. In a time when we were engaged in the height of the Cold War, Tony Garcia was there to support our troops – including our heroes fighting in Vietnam. And he was an engaged hero, too – having served in WWII and Korea. He was friends with great Americans who used their celebrity status for patriotic endeavors, like Bob Hope and his fellow veteran Jimmy Stewart. And he was a champion for West Tampa in a time when West Tampa needed a champion. His family remembers him with so much affection, and so should all of Tampa," said Councilman Luis Viera.
The new Tony Garcia Jr. street sign is located at the corner of N Howard Avenue and W Cherry Street.